Sheldon, Sidney. If tomorrow comes, William Morrow & Co., New York, 1985. Hardcover, pages 416. 

Rating: 6.5/10 

What is more important – credibility or readability? If credibility was the sole criterion, I should throw this book away in the first hundred pages – not only away, but in the fire. Nothing adds up. A lovely girl, engaged to a rich man and carrying his baby inside her, on death of her mother begins to engage in activities so irrational, you begin to wonder why Sidney Sheldon managed to get published, let alone his legendary bestselling numbers. The next three hundred pages tell you why Sheldon is such a successful author. If tomorrow comes is extremely readable, I read the 400 pages in half a day without leaving my chair.

Something similar between the James Bond movies and this book. You must suspend your sense of disbelief before attempting either. You know the protagonist will not die, he (she in case of this book) must emerge as the winner. All the bad guys would be killed. Viewers and readers have a feel-good emotion, with each enacted revenge.  The hero has a licence to kill. In this book, Tracy Whitney, the superwoman, has a licence to con. The James Bond movies and If tomorrow comes are fairytales for adults. If you can take it in that spirit, the book is a great entertainment. 

Some of the con tricks in the books are brazenly lifted from true stories or fiction. Anyone familiar with Russian literature may know about Ostap Bender (twelve chairs: 1927) and his playing against the grandmasters without knowing how to play chess. That story has been cleverly plagiarized here for the western world. 

Verdict: Read for readability, read only if you love watching James Bond movies.